policy and politics from a local government and democracy viewpoint, written by the team at LGiU

40 per cent cuts are political, not economic

CPSP@LGiU Director John Tizard has described plans for 40 per cent cuts that go “beyond those widely seen as required to close the financial deficit” as political not economic. Cuts of this magnitude will reshape the state, he argues. Government must therefore clearly articulate its vision for the state. It can no longer “simply ‘take 40% of the money away’ and say to local authorities and other public agencies – ‘over to you to make the decisions on what to do and what not to do’” but “must signal, clearly and swiftly, what is no longer required statutorily or centrally from local authorities and other public agencies”.